Jefferson Adams is a freelance writer living in San Francisco. His poems, essays and photographs have appeared in Antioch Review, Blue Mesa Review, CALIBAN, Hayden's Ferry Review, Huffington Post, the Mississippi Review, and Slate among others.

He is a member of both the National Writers Union, the International Federation of Journalists, and covers San Francisco Health News for Examiner.com.

By Jefferson Adams

Published on 04/10/2007

Celiac.com 04/10/2007 - According to a recent Swedish
research report, the adverse immune respons

Celiac.com 04/10/2007 - According to a recent Swedish
research report, the adverse immune response to gluten may be tied to
a specific set of dendrite cells in the small intestine. A team led by
Dr. J.F. Ludvigsson of Orebro University Hospital set out to compare rates
of bone fracture in patients with celiac disease versus those from normal
individuals. The goal of the study was to assess the connection between
celiac disease and fractures.

The study used Cox regression to examine over 13,000
patients with celiac disease, along with 65,000 people among the general
population who were sex and age-matched. The Study tallied 1365 first
hip fractures 4867 non-hip fractures.

The results showed celiac disease to be a contributing
factor in fractures at a rate of 4 fractures per 100,000 people per year,
compared to a rate of 2 fractures per 100,000 people per year for non-celiacs.

The study calculated the following hazard ratios for
celiac-associated hip fracture:

Adults: ¼ 2.1; 95% CI ¼ 1.8–2.4

Children: ¼ 2.6; 95% CI ¼ 1.1–6.2

For celiac-associated non-hip fractures, the hazard ratios
were:

Adults: ¼ 1.4; 95% CI ¼ 1.3–1.5

Children: ¼ 1.1; 95% CI ¼ 1.0–1.2

The study concludes that both adults and children with celiac disease run a significant risk of increased hip fractures and fractures of any type. These increased risks continue for at least 20 years following diagnosis. The study did not measure risk for undiagnosed celiacs, but common sense would indicate that the risks would be the same, or perhaps even greater. Clearly, more research is needed to determine the reasons for these increased fracture risks among celiac patients, and also to determine the associated risks for non-celiacs.

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 25, 273–285

health writer who lives in San Francisco and is a frequent author of articles
for Celiac.com.